Torah Curtain Ottoman Empire, 1893

The lengthy dedicatory inscription on this Torah curtain clearly dates it to the year 1893 and identifies the donor as "Hayyim she-Amad. " This particular lexical construction, according to Yosef Avivi, indicates that the donor was a Jew who had converted out of the faith of his fathers, thus making the gift rather curious. The origin of this curtain may be established though a further examination of the inscription which plainly reads Kahal Kadosh Sisilia (holy community of Sicily).  As the Jews were expelled from the Island of Sicily in 1492, no such community existed in 1893.  However, following the expulsion, many Sicilian Jews relocated to the Ottoman Empire where they established their own small communities, bringing with them a variety of Sicilian traditions.

While Sicilian congregations are known to have existed in other cities such as Ioninna and Istanbul until the early part of the 20^th century, Salonika was preeminent among them, even publishing several editions of their liturgical rite using the same name as sewn on the present Torah curtain: Kahal Kadosh Sisilia.